Georgia · Hart County · Missing & Alerts
Lake Hartwell Body Recovered in Hart County, GA: David Seymour, 73, Missing Since June
A search team found a body in about 88 feet of water on Saturday night, in the stretch of Lake Hartwell crews had worked since June 20. The Hart County Coroner’s Office is working to confirm who it is.
Key facts
- What
- A body recovered from Lake Hartwell, in the area crews had searched since June
- Where
- Lake Hartwell, Hart County, Georgia — between the Gum Branch Mega Ramp and Ridge Road
- Recovered
- Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026, just after 9 p.m., from about 88 feet of water
- Found by
- Bruce’s Legacy Search and Rescue Team, a nonprofit group
- Missing since
- Saturday, June 20, 2026 — David Seymour, 73, of Bowman
- Identification
- With the Hart County Coroner’s Office; none announced publicly
- Cause of death
- Not determined
- Searched
- Hart County Sheriff’s Office, Hart County EMS, Hart County EMA, Elbert County EMA, Georgia DNR
- What happened on Lake Hartwell?
- Who is David Seymour?
- Has the body been formally identified?
- How did David Seymour disappear on June 20?
- Which agencies searched for him?
- Why did the search take nearly two months?
- Which state and county is this part of Lake Hartwell in?
- What we don’t know yet
- Frequently asked questions
What happened on Lake Hartwell?
A body was pulled from Lake Hartwell in Hart County on Saturday night, nearly two months after a Bowman man went into the water from his boat and did not come back up.
Bruce’s Legacy Search and Rescue Team reached investigators just after 9 p.m. on Aug. 15 to say it had come upon a body in roughly 88 feet of water, the sheriff’s office said in an account carried by FOX 5 Atlanta. It was the same stretch of lake crews had worked since a drowning was reported there on June 20.
The body was brought up and turned over to the Hart County Coroner’s Office. WSB-TV reported that the sheriff’s office had not said whether the remains belong to the man reported missing earlier in the summer.
Sheriff Chris Carroll thanked the search teams in a statement his office released Sunday. “Their dedication, countless hours of searching, and willingness to continue working toward bringing closure to this family are greatly appreciated,” the statement said, naming Bruce’s Legacy, Mitchell’s Light and Deep Adventures.
Who is David Seymour?
David Seymour, 73, of Bowman. He went missing on Lake Hartwell on a Saturday evening in June, and crews looked for him for the rest of the summer.
FOX Carolina and WRDW, sister Gray Media stations carrying the same report, said Bruce’s Legacy identified the person recovered on Saturday as Seymour. AccessNorthGeorgia reported that Hart County authorities believe the body is his.
92.1 WLHR in Lavonia named him on July 3, when DNR crews were still running sonar sweeps daily.
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Has the body been formally identified?
Not publicly. Identification sits with the Hart County Coroner’s Office. As of Monday, FOX 5 Atlanta reported, no positive identification had been announced, and authorities had stopped short of tying the person recovered to the missing boater.
No cause or manner of death has been released either. FOX Carolina and WRDW reported that FOX Carolina and WRDW reported the incident was believed to be accidental — a sheriff’s characterization of a boating accident, not a coroner’s ruling on a death.
How did David Seymour disappear on June 20?
It began with a hat. Sheriff Carroll said witnesses described Seymour steering his boat back toward the Hartwell Marina after a day at Big Oaks Recreation Area when the hat blew off his head. He turned the boat around to go get it, went into the water and never surfaced, 92.1 WLHR reported. Passengers on board tried to reach him.
Hart County 911 took a call about a possible drowning near the Mega Ramp just before 6 p.m. that Saturday, AccessNorthGeorgia reported, citing the sheriff’s office. Lt. Adam Loudermilk of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources law enforcement office described it the same way to AccessNorthGeorgia — a man who went into the water from his boat to retrieve an item and could not get back to the vessel.
92.1 WLHR placed the spot somewhere between the Gum Branch Mega Ramp and Ridge Road.
| When | What happened |
|---|---|
| Sat., June 20, just before 6 p.m. | Hart County 911 takes a call about a possible drowning near the Mega Ramp |
| Sun., June 21 | The sheriff’s office posts about the search; DNR game wardens and county crews begin sonar sweeps |
| Wed., July 1 | A Georgia DNR aviation crew flies the area, per a DNR spokesman |
| Fri., July 3 | Sonar boats are still going out daily, 92.1 WLHR reports |
| Sat., Aug. 15, just after 9 p.m. | Bruce’s Legacy tells the sheriff’s office it has found a body in about 88 feet of water |
| Sun., Aug. 16 | The sheriff’s office posts a statement; the body goes to the Hart County Coroner’s Office |
Dates and weekdays as the agencies and outlets gave them. AccessNorthGeorgia placed the recovery on a Friday evening; the sheriff’s office, relayed by FOX 5 Atlanta, gave it as Aug. 15, which was a Saturday.
Which agencies searched for him?
Georgia agencies, on the Georgia side of the lake. Deputies from the Hart County Sheriff’s Office responded on June 20 alongside Hart County EMS, the Hart County Emergency Management Agency and Elbert County EMA, joining Georgia Department of Natural Resources game wardens, AccessNorthGeorgia reported.
Boats from the sheriff’s office, both county EMAs and Georgia DNR ran boat-mounted sonar over the area for weeks, 92.1 WLHR reported. FOX 5 Atlanta reported that crews also put remotely operated underwater vehicles down to look below the surface and that Georgia DNR brought in sector scan sonar.
DNR spokesman Mark McKinnon told 92.1 WLHR in early July that side-scan sonar crews were out every day and that a DNR aviation crew had flown the area that week.
Three groups were named in the sheriff’s Sunday statement, along with other teams and individuals: Bruce’s Legacy, Mitchell’s Light and Deep Adventures.
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Why did the search take nearly two months?
Depth and trees. Sheriff Carroll said the water where crews were working near Ridge Road runs between 60 and 120 feet deep, with a large stand of dead trees standing on the bottom — conditions he described as making the search difficult, 92.1 WLHR reported.
The July account put it in similar terms: about 100 feet of water in that part of the lake, with submerged trees estimated at roughly 60 feet tall. The body was ultimately found in about 88 feet of water.
92.1 WLHR reported that Bruce’s Legacy founder Keith Cormican said on the group’s Facebook page that his team searched five days before finding him Saturday night.
Which state and county is this part of Lake Hartwell in?
Hart County, Georgia. Lake Hartwell straddles the Georgia–South Carolina line, and stations on both sides covered the recovery, but the agencies handling it are all Georgia agencies: the Hart County Sheriff’s Office, the Hart County Coroner’s Office and Georgia DNR game wardens.
Stations in Georgia and in Upstate South Carolina both covered the recovery, but the incident and the response were on the Georgia side.
What we don’t know yet
- Whether the Hart County Coroner’s Office has completed the identification, and when it will say so.
- The cause and manner of death, which no agency has announced.
- Whether an autopsy has been performed or ordered.
- How far the recovery point was from where Seymour was last seen on June 20.
- Whether the Georgia DNR investigation into the June 20 boating incident has been closed.
Frequently asked questions
What happened on Lake Hartwell?
A body was recovered from Lake Hartwell in Hart County, Georgia, after Bruce’s Legacy Search and Rescue Team notified the Hart County Sheriff’s Office just after 9 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026, that it had found a body in about 88 feet of water. FOX 5 Atlanta reported the location was the same stretch crews had been searching since a June 20 drowning report.
Who is David Seymour?
David Seymour, 73, of Bowman, Georgia. FOX Carolina and WRDW reported that Bruce’s Legacy identified the person recovered as Seymour. AccessNorthGeorgia reported that Hart County authorities believe the body is his. 92.1 WLHR named him during the June search.
Has the body been formally identified?
Not publicly. The body was turned over to the Hart County Coroner’s Office for identification. FOX 5 Atlanta reported that no positive identification had been announced as of Monday, and WSB-TV reported that the sheriff’s office had not said whether the remains belong to the man reported missing in June.
How did David Seymour disappear on June 20?
Hart County Sheriff Chris Carroll said witnesses described Seymour driving his boat back toward the Hartwell Marina after a day at Big Oaks Recreation Area when his hat blew off. He turned the boat around, jumped in to get it and never came back up. 92.1 WLHR reported that passengers tried to reach him.
Which agencies searched for him?
The Hart County Sheriff’s Office, Hart County EMS, Hart County Emergency Management Agency, Elbert County Emergency Management Agency and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. Bruce’s Legacy Search and Rescue Team, Mitchell’s Light and Deep Adventures also took part.
Why did the search take nearly two months?
Sheriff Chris Carroll said the water near Ridge Road runs between 60 and 120 feet deep and that a large stand of dead trees sits below the surface, which made the search difficult. In July, 92.1 WLHR reported the depth in that area at about 100 feet with submerged trees roughly 60 feet tall.
Which state and county is this part of Lake Hartwell in?
Hart County, Georgia. The Hart County Sheriff’s Office, the Hart County Coroner’s Office and Georgia Department of Natural Resources game wardens are the agencies named. Lake Hartwell itself straddles the Georgia–South Carolina line.
Has a cause of death been released?
No. No coroner’s finding on cause or manner of death has been announced. FOX Carolina and WRDW reported that Sheriff Chris Carroll described the June 20 incident as believed to be accidental, which is a sheriff’s characterization rather than a coroner’s ruling.
Who found the body?
Bruce’s Legacy Search and Rescue Team, a nonprofit group. 92.1 WLHR reported that founder Keith Cormican said on the group’s Facebook page that the body was found Saturday night after five days of searching.
Sources
- 92.1 WLHR — Body of missing Bowman man found in Lake Hartwell Saturday
- 92.1 WLHR — Search for drowning victim on Lake Hartwell continues
- FOX 5 Atlanta — Body found in Lake Hartwell months after reported drowning
- WSB-TV — Body discovered in Lake Hartwell in area where authorities searched for drowning victim
- FOX Carolina — Body of drowning victim recovered from Lake Hartwell months later
- WRDW — Body of drowning victim recovered from Ga. lake months later
- AccessNorthGeorgia — Body of Lake Hartwell drowning victim, missing since June, believed found
Compiled by The Local Alert Georgia Staff from the named news outlets linked above and the Hart County Sheriff’s Office statement they carry. The Local Alert is not a law enforcement agency and not a law firm. No cause or manner of death has been determined. Corrections and removal requests: see our corrections policy.
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